Book Review: The Assassin by Tim Lebbon

The Assassin is a series of short stories by prolific sci-fi and fantasy writer Tim Lebbons that saw a limited publication in the early 2000s. It follows a mysterious and dangerous man named Gabriel in his pursuit of Temple; an evil and inhuman being. They have played their game of cat and mouse throughout the ages and in Dead Man’s Hand they meet in the American wild west, while Pieces of Hate sees an earlier clash between them during the golden age of piracy. With Tor.com planning to republish the series this year it’s a fine time to dig up these old ghosts.

The brooding enigma of Gabriel is immediately reminiscent of another dark fantasy protagonist: Roland Deschain of Stephen King’s The Dark Tower. Even the western tropes of the first story and Gabriel’s pursuit of a shadowy figure draw comparisons. But Lebbons’ story is more heavily grounded in reality. He writes realistically about notable historic periods, but with a supernatural twist. The dark magic surrounding Gabriel and Temple is foreign to this world, and it frightens every character besides them.

With news of the film coming in it’s an excellent time to release anything Dark Tower-esque.

Speaking of which, fear is a prominent theme throughout both stories. Temple takes delight in playing a person’s fears against them, while his nemesis alone seems to be immune to the effect. Instead Gabriel’s character is focused on hatred; one of the main reasons he hunts Temple is to take revenge for the horrible things done to him by the creature. Lebbons shows no restraint when it comes to torturing his protagonist, both physically and psychologically, and it all serves the purpose of feeding Gabriel’s hatred.

There are strong ties between these negative emotions and the ancient powers that fuel both men. In some ways Gabriel is as much a creature of darkness as Temple. He admits he has done terrible things in the past to further his pursuit. While Temple is pure evil, it is interesting to wonder whether Gabriel has any heroic qualities at all that set him apart from the former.

The first two books of The Assassin are short but enjoyable reads. The depiction of Gabriel and Temple as omens of destruction in whichever corner of the world their battle takes them to is thrilling. While Dead Man’s Hand and Pieces of Hate are set for publication on March 15th, we will not see the third installment for another few months. For those who have not read the original publication it will be exciting to see where Lebbon takes this tale of fear and hate to next.

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Gaelcon, Ireland's Premier Games Convention, takes over the Ballsbridge Hotel from October 27th-30th for another full weekend of gaming goodness. Featuring everything from RPGs and LARPs to War Games and

Event Details

Gaelcon, Ireland’s Premier Games Convention, takes over the Ballsbridge Hotel from October 27th-30th for another full weekend of gaming goodness. Featuring everything from RPGs and LARPs to War Games and Board Games there’s sure to be something for everyone at this years convention.

Both Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Heresy will feature over the weekend, while a full timetable for RPGs and LARPs can be found at www.gaelcon.com.

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You and up to three friends will band together to take on our weird and wacky array of photo-challenges as you scramble across the city on a strange sightseeing tour

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You and up to three friends will band together to take on our weird and wacky array of photo-challenges as you scramble across the city on a strange sightseeing tour of Dublin’s oft-overlooked marvels.

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RAID 2018 is a gaming event, by gamers, for gamers. Offering BYOC LAN tournaments, video game concerts, talks from industry professionals and much more, we're banking on this being the best

Event Details

RAID 2018 is a gaming event, by gamers, for gamers. Offering BYOC LAN tournaments, video game concerts, talks from industry professionals and much more, we’re banking on this being the best gaming event in Ireland during 2018!

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Event Details

RAID 2018 is a gaming event, by gamers, for gamers. Offering BYOC LAN tournaments, video game concerts, talks from industry professionals and much more, we're banking on this being the best

Event Details

RAID 2018 is a gaming event, by gamers, for gamers. Offering BYOC LAN tournaments, video game concerts, talks from industry professionals and much more, we’re banking on this being the best gaming event in Ireland during 2018!